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Saturday, November 16, 2013

PM tells customs to clean up

The government has set a 60-day deadline for the customs department to clean up corruption within the department, Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan confirmed yesterday.

Siphan said when the government prepared the 2014 national budget in a meeting at the end of last month, they discussed reforms in the General Department of Customs and Excise to ensure greater transparency and accountability of national revenue.

Improvements have already been made, according to Siphan, with customs officers adhering to official costs.

Pen Sam Ath, senior official at the customs department, said yesterday that he was not authorised to reveal details of the planned reforms, but that a draft has been completed.
“As far as I know, the action plan and operation plan are already drafted [by the Ministry of Economy and Finance],” Sam Ath said.

The ministry could not be reached for comment.

Xinhua reported on Wednesday that Cambodian customs officials called on importers to pay fees as stated by law rather than looking to bribe customs officers, after complaints by Chinese importers about increased tariffs.

Preap Kol

Preap Kol, executive director of Transparency International Cambodia said it’s not confined to Chinese importers, but “all different neighbouring countries, it could be from ... China, it could be from Vietnam, it could be from Thailand.”

“Corruption in the taxation and customs sector is also an issue that needs to be tackled,” he said, adding that “a lot of money” is lost through corruption in both areas.

Asked about the two month deadline, he said he has not heard anything concrete about it but in general, “I think it indicates a matter of emergency, a matter of urgency that [Prime Minister Hun Sen] realises that the people now demand strongly that the government take action against corrupt officials.”

But Kol warned that little would be done without action or steps to help bring the area into compliance. Kol suggested an electronic system that records income or using a video camera at checkpoints.

Song Saran, president of rice exporting company Amru Rice Cambodia, said that unofficial payments to export the rice is still a problem which hinders the exporting potential of the country. “[I need to pay] customs officers, economic police, and CAMCONTROL officers [unofficial payments] and that is making production costs higher. That is our difficulty to compete with other countries.”

According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, total exports of Cambodian products is valued at $5.2 billion in the first nine months of this year, a 26 per cent increase compared to $4.1 billion in the same period last year. In terms of imports, the country spent about $6.8 billion in the first nine months of this year, an increase 13 per cent from $6 billion in the same period last year.

It is time for all top ranges who is working for Cambodia's Government take them to the Internationals court,they are committed crime/ killing innocents people. Please stop them right now,we needs UN to help ....

For instance, look at the International airport(porchintong) too many amazing corrupted customs..how to ask for bribes....So shamed in front of hundred hundred of local and foreigners travelers eyes...!!!

What's the improvement have been made, A Phay SiVu Phuc?That's so ridiculous with what you said as clean up all the mess(corruption) as a corruption among the CPP's.That's only your family is likely to clean your house starting from your back yard through inside your house.But that way does not work in Western country that if they clean their house they always start from inside house through the outside or from the top to bottom's house.For example, just not to stop most of Police Military asking for $5 at every of their post guard, Okay.What you can stop it you must ask your dumb's dog's CPP from the top ranking any position as not to least all of Khmer belonging's national resources as a least with 99.99 years to Youn&China with a low rate, etc.You know nothing too, but with a full of corruption and traitor by servicing Youn's interest with your buddies.